The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 29, 1998
Filed:
Jun. 14, 1996
Ali Yahiaoui, Roswell, GA (US);
Xin Ning, Alpharetta, GA (US);
Charles Edward Bolian, II, Buford, GA (US);
Debra Jean McDowall, Roswell, GA (US);
David Charles Potts, Dunwoody, GA (US);
Daniel Joseph VanHout, Roswell, GA (US);
Kimberly-Clark Worldwide, Inc., Neenah, WI (US);
Abstract
A coated porous substrate composed of a hydrophobic polymer which is substantially uniformly coated with a hydrophilic polymeric material. The substrate may be a sheet-like material, examples of which are foams, fibers, and fibrous webs. The fibrous webs desirably will be nonwoven webs. The coating on the substrate is durable to an aqueous medium at a temperature in a range of from about 10.degree. C. to about 50.degree. C. and does not significantly suppress the surface tension of an aqueous medium with which the coated substrate may come in contact. The hydrophobic polymer may be a polyolefin, such as polyethylene or polypropylene. The hydrophilic polymeric material with which the polymer fibers are coated may be a polysaccharide or a modified polysaccharide. Also provided is a method of preparing a coated porous substrate which involves providing a porous substrate composed of a hydrophobic polymer. At least a portion of the substrate then is exposed to a field of reactive species. At least a portion of the porous substrate, including the portion exposed to the reactive species, is treated with a mixture which includes water and a hydrophilic polymeric material under conditions sufficient to substantially uniformly coat the porous substrate with the hydrophilic polymeric material.